Good morning EXers! So often after the first days of a quit, we seem to lose some of our stamina or rather the drive that we had felt when we first put out that last cigarette. There’s really no way to sugar coat those first days. Bottom line is that those first days are hard!
The thing to remember during those first hard days is our future. That’s right. When we feel the worst, it’s really hard to find things in the now that will help us to continue to fight, simply because the now is pretty miserable. We really don’t feel like analyzing and yet if we do, it can do wonders for us.
I always looked ahead, to the time after my current discomfort and the rewards that would come with it. I could imagine the peace and the freedom that was there for the taking, so long as I got myself through a little rough patch. I would see the future without cigarettes in my mind’s eye and when I peered into the future, I would always be smiling!
I used my mountain as well, because to me it represented so much of what I longed to see. So much of the life that I wanted to build was there waiting for me, if I could just get past today. And so one day at a time I trudged on, always believing in what was awaiting me and always looking ahead to where my goal lied.
I always remembered my mantra that what I do today will determine what my future will look like tomorrow. I’d take many deep breaths and would make myself understand something that was very important to me. That each day that I lived smoke free, another tentacle of my addiction would be ripped from my being. And with each tentacle that was removed, it would make the next one that much easier.
The thing to remember about quitting is that it’s a learning experience. And every crave that we overcome. Every day of success that we have teaches us how to survive the next day.
And one thing I remembered was that the physical discomfort of a crave only lasts a few minutes at most. If we latch onto that crave, then we feel discomfort seemingly the entire day. But if we can accept for what it is and dismiss it, then we’ve won another step toward freedom.
Of course it’s going to be tough and a big part of the reason is that our reward is a little ways away. But always remember that it’s there. That one day you’ll be standing on the other side of your addiction and you will be free!
You will find the peace that awaits any of us brave enough to take that first step and decide that our futures are more important than a little discomfort at first. Everyone who has quit has felt what you might be feeling now.
Just remember that what you’re doing now is for your future. What you’re doing now is for life. What you are doing now can dictate how the future will be. Go for it! No one is lying when they tell you how wonderful you will feel down the road. You’re not losing a thing. Instead, you’re gaining an incredible future and when you get there, you too will be telling others that it was all worth it. That life is wonderful and that there really is peace!
ONWARD TO FREEDOM!!!
Chuck
